Man who left 2 pounds of marijuana in Uber arrested by undercover officer while trying to retrieve it

Malik Mollett, 21, was arrested after police say he acknowledged the drugs were his in a meeting with an undercover trooper at McDonald's.

January 13, 2019 at 1:11 AM CST - Updated January 13 at 1:11 AM

PITTSBURGH (WPXI/CNN) - A 21-year-old man was arrested after police say he met up with an undercover trooper to try and get back the high-quality marijuana he allegedly left in the backseat of an Uber.

Malik Mollett, 21, is being held on $150,000 bail following his arrest Thursday.

Police say when Mollett booked an Uber ride near Pittsburgh in late December, he left behind a bag with some valuable cargo inside.

"He contacted Uber later through email and had asked them to somehow get him back this item, the bag,” Trooper Steve Limani said.

Malik Mollett, 21, was arrested after police say he acknowledged the drugs were his in a meeting with an undercover trooper at McDonald's. (Source: Facebook/WPXI/Cox/CNN)

Mollett’s Uber driver was getting ready to return the bag but looked inside and found two pounds of marijuana, which police say has a street value in the thousands.

"When the Uber driver looks in the bag, he realizes he’s been toting around a bunch of marijuana that’s sealed and packaged inside this bag, and he’s supposed to deliver it to the person that left his vehicle,” Limani said.

The Uber driver called police instead.

Troopers found Mollett’s number in Uber records and reached out to him, pretending to be his driver and even sending him a picture of the bag to ensure it was his.

Mollett agreed to meet with an undercover trooper at McDonald’s, so he could retrieve the bag.

Police say the marijuana is of a very high grade and has a street value in the thousands. (Source: Pennsylvania State Police/WPXI/Cox/CNN)

When the trooper returned the bag, police say Mollett seemed excited and happy to get it back, not realizing who was actually behind the delivery.

"I think he even made a reference to ‘How much of this did you guys smoke?’ And the undercover officer that we had dropping it off said they did not consume any of his marijuana,” Limani said.

Police say Mollett acknowledged to the trooper that the bag was his, and the other undercover officers in the restaurant took him into custody.